|
2004/10/04, 02:18 AM
I'm worried about my dad. He'll be 56 next month, he's 5'8" and weighs 165 pounds. He's not in terrible shape or anything, he stays pretty active with all the farm-work and what-not, but the other day he got the results of his bloodwork back and his cholesterol is out of whack. His LDL(bad) cholesterol came back in the normal range, but his HDL(good) cholesterol was 17. The doctor said it was the lowest level he's ever seen in all his years of practicing medicine. He also has high triglyceride levels and is on a medicine called tricor to help with that. What would you guess are some reasons his HDL is so low, and what would be some tips for him to fix it? I try to get him to work out with me but he's tired alot as he works 80 hours/week as a coal-miner, then comes home to do farm work. I'm hoping that he'll work out with me more now that most of the farming is over with.
Additionally, I've always wondered about this, he only gets on average 5-6 hours of sleep/night. He's been like this since he was a boy and had to milk cows before going to school, and as an adult he gets up at 3:45am to go to work. Has his body just adjusted to this amount of sleep over the past 45 years?
Thanks in advance for your input.
|
|
|
|
2004/10/04, 07:26 AM
Sorry you are worried about your Dad.
There are various ways that your dad can try to increase his HDL with his diet, in addition to taking the medication his doc has prescribed.
oily fish (tuna, salmon, mackerel) can raise HDL levels.
I have copied this from a post BB1 made recently on the same subject:
"Eat plenty of fiber, especially water soluble fiber like oats and flaxmeal. Without fiber there is nothing to soak up the cholesterol.
Lots of green leafy veggies such as spinach and kale.
Soy competes with bad cholesterol and raises the blood level of good cholesterol.
Fresh garlic is also great, the sulfides decrease tendency for blood clots, and they lower levels of bad cholesterol(LDL).
Studies show that cranberry juice is very effective(3 glasses per day)...can raise your good cholesterol(HDL) by as much as 10%.
Think about supplementing with CO Q10."
Leafy green veg contains folate, and if he can't get a good intake of this, he should take a folate/folic acid supplement - this reduces homocysteine levels, which have recently been implicated in heart disease.
I'm not sure about the answer to your sleep question - I understand that different people seem to adjust better to reduced sleep patterns than others, and it seems that changing shift patterns are probably more of a problem than constant shifts, but I don't know about your Dad's insivisual case.
|
|
2004/10/04, 05:56 PM
Thanks princesslodgey for your reply. I'll try my best to change my dad's diet :) He doesn't like seafood though so the fish suggestion will be an uphill battle at best. I'll see what he says about the cranberry juice. He goes back in for more tests next month so hopefully his numbers will be better then. Is bad cholesterol and high triglycerides genetic? I'm 23 and have never had any bloodwork done. I guess these problems are more diet-related than exercies related? Thanks again for your reply.
|
|
2004/10/05, 06:02 AM
Other sources of the good fats are nuts, olives and avocadoes.
It can be genetic, so I think getting your blood checked would be a good idea.
I think, although don't quote me, that exercise can help too, but is probably not as important as diet or genetics.
good luck
|
